


I'll Always Remember Us This Way

by captain_bucky_writesaswell



Series: Missing Scenes S03 [2]
Category: La Reina del Sur (TV), Queen of the South (TV)
Genre: Cooking, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Watching Someone Sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-25
Updated: 2018-10-25
Packaged: 2019-08-07 14:08:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16409912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captain_bucky_writesaswell/pseuds/captain_bucky_writesaswell
Summary: (post 302)James and Teresa have some time to themselves while Pote recovers. Domestic fluff is involved.





	I'll Always Remember Us This Way

**Author's Note:**

> "...When the sun goes down and the band won't play, I'll always remember us this way..."

The sun was beginning to stoop down in the evening sky.

“Are you hungry?” She turned to him, leaning herself against the balcony brick wall.

James’ mouth turns into a small smile - “starving” he replies.

“Okay” she grins. She might not trust him yet, but she’s sure happy he’s here, happy to have somebody else to talk to other than Pote.

“come on-” she nods her head sideways in the direction of the door and walks back into the hallway.

James looks puzzled. Was she going to cook for them both? He’d never seen her prepare a meal, it was always Pote who did the cooking at Camila’s compound. Before that, when she was one of the girls at the warehouse, they were always provided with food. He follows behind her nonetheless into the kitchen, stopping in the doorway as she’s already grabbing items from various cupboards and drawers.

“You want a hand?” He offers. James wasn’t really very domestic at all. He would probably be able to survive if he had to by himself. When he left Camila, he thought he’d be on his own. Instead, Tonto and Charger followed him away from Camila and stayed by his side. Then Devon Finch found him and put him to work, so he never got to build a life of his own in his house in Phoenix, and therefore resulted to takeaways and ready meals most nights.

“No it’s okay” Teresa responded, filling a pan with water and placing it on the stove. To be honest, James was a little relieved when she rejected his help, his didn’t know the first thing about finding his way around a kitchen.

He steps forwards and sits on a bar stool opposite the counter where Teresa was busying herself.

“What are you making?” He lifts his chin up to try and peek over to the other side.

“Something to remind you of home. You’ve come a long way... thank you.” She’s sincere, she really was grateful for what he’d done.

James can feel the warmth in her words but is unsure what he’s being thanked for, Camila never thanked him for anything. She just expected him to do things for her, after all, it _was_ his job. “For what?” He furrows his brows a little closer together, resting forwards on his elbows onto the counter top.

Teresa is silent for a second. She stops what she’s doing to look at him with her tired eyes, “for coming here when you did. You saved me twice today. At the restaurant and at our safe house, so thank you.”

James relaxes down further into his seat.“You don’t ever need to thank me for anything Teresa. Whatever you need, I’m here.”

She holds back an argument about needing to thank him. They’d always had the same unspoken thing - he saves her, she saves him, with a silent thanks usually just offered in a single look. That hadn’t changed between them. She nods her head once, before returning to prepare their dinner.

 

They didn’t talk much whilst she was cooking. James had swung around and turned on the tv, both of them passing minor comments about whatever appeared on the news. The smell of Teresa’s cooking has filled the kitchen and found it’s way to James, making his belly rumble loud enough for Teresa to hear. Teresa gave a small chuckle to herself every time she heard it. It was weird to see him vulnerable, even in this tiny way.

“Here you go” she says, placing his bowl down on the counter top behind him. She stands still to see his reaction whilst spooning out her portion into a bowl.

James turned around on the stool, almost surprised at what she’d made for them - “Mac and cheese?” He asks, his eyebrows raised and his eyes wide with lust for the bowl of food which he loved so much. “You did this, for me?”

Teresa walks around the kitchen island to sit on the stool next to him, handing him a fork as she sits down.“Mhm, I know you like it and it’s quick to make.”

James watches her as she begins to tuck into the pasta. It was something so simple. She could have made anything that _she_ wanted to eat, yet she chose to make one of his favourite meals. He already knows he loves her, but this was just the metaphorical icing on the cake. What made it better, is that Teresa is a damn good cook.

 

Whilst they ate, Teresa had also gotten up and taken a couple of beers out of the fridge, opening them both and handing one over to James before sitting back down next to him again. He thanked her for the drink and they finished their food.

“That, was a really good mac’n’cheese” James praises as he gets up to put the bowls and forks into the sink.Teresa gives a satisfied smile at his comment. She didn’t usually cook, that’s one of the things Pote took control of. But she liked to be told that the food that she did occasionally make was nice once in a while. She wants to say something. She doesn’t know quite _what_ , but she opens her mouth as if to go to speak, before being interrupted by a pained cry from down the corridor.

Both James and Teresa turn their attention quickly to the direction of Pote’s room. James’ reflex is to reach back for the gun that he doesn’t currently have holstered in his waistband, grabbing on to nothing but air.Without hesitation, Teresa is up on her feet and walking quickly to check on Pote.

 

James stays tense in the kitchen until the apartment quietened down again. He walks over to the living area that’s coming off of the kitchen and sets himself down in one corner of the cream fabric sofa. He sighs, heavily, running his hands down his face and through his beard. He hadn’t always been on the best of terms with Pote, but he didn’t want to see him hurt either.

After 10 minutes, Teresa emerged from the hallway and sat with her feet beneath her on the opposite end of the sofa. Their living area was small, consisting of only a three person sofa and a coffee table, the view from the bay window looking out over the street and towards the river.

Teresa sighs, closing her eyes and interlacing her hands to rest above her forehead.

“Was he alright?” James breaks the silence.

Teresa opens her eyes and looks at James, dropping her hands to her thighs. “It was just a bad dream, he’ll be okay.”

James nods and looks out across the river, he has nothing more to say.

“I don’t want him to know you’re staying here yet.” Teresa speaks up, her words causing James to narrow his eyes but remain focussed on the calm waters. “He’s been through a lot. I know and I understand why you’re here now with us, but he doesn’t, and I don’t want him to get stressed.”James turns his head to face Teresa, the same expression evident.

“We didn’t exactly finish on the best of terms six months ago...” Teresa finishes.

James nods, looking down at the empty patch of sofa between them. He begins to stand up “Okay. Look, I’ll go back to the place I rented”

“No-” Teresa stopped him, “No, I want you to stay here. If it’s true that Camila sent those sicarios after me then she will send more. I can’t take that risk, especially with Pote how he is.”

“Okay” he starts, “give me half an hour to go get my things? I’ll come back.”

Teresa let James leave. And just like he promised, he came back, a small black leather duffel bag of clothes and his extra weapons in tow.Teresa realised and then apologised for the fact that they only lived in a two-bed apartment. James said not to worry, that he would be perfectly comfortable on the sofa. He tucked himself on the sofa under a blanket which Teresa usually kept on her bed for the night. She also brought him out a more comfortable pillow than the sofa’s cushions would provide.

Teresa checked on Pote for one final time before going to her room. She washed her face and tried to get some sleep.

 

The night air was cool and crisp. Teresa knew this because she was awake, she couldn’t sleep. A combination of a disturbed sleep pattern and worrying about Pote was probably the current cause for her insomnia. She heaved herself up onto her feet, pottering her way quietly towards the kitchen. Perhaps a 2am snack would help her feel more tired. She made her way across to the fridge, her fluffy bed socks slipping on the polished wooden floor. She scanned the contents of the fridge, deciding on the small plastic pot of leftover macaroni. She grabbed a fork and made her way back towards the hallway.

Somehow in the last few hours, she’d forgotten that James was asleep on the sofa. A small snort like sound from his light snoring startled her, making her drop the fork to the ground. Teresa’s teeth gritted together and her shoulders tensed as the fork clattered against the floor.

James must have been extremely tired for the noise not to wake him. Teresa bent to pick up the fork and noticed the blanket she lent to James had fallen off of his legs. She placed her items on the counter and tiptoed over to the sleeping James, trying her best to not disturb him. She crouched to pick up the fallen end of the blanket and draped it gently back over his legs. She tucked it cautiously behind one of his legs so that it hopefully wouldn’t fall off again. She stood and looked at him, watched him sleep so peacefully. Even in this dark light, he looked about ten years younger in his tranquility.

She reached out, tucking a curl of his hair back into its usual position, letting her fingers rest in his hair for maybe a few seconds too long. Then he stirred beneath her and she retracted her hand away back to her side, quickly going to grab her snack and making her way back to her room.

She closed her door behind her and leant her back against it, taking a deep breath before switching on her lamp and curling herself back up under her bedsheets.

**Author's Note:**

> aww this one was fluffier :)


End file.
